Forgotten Umbrellas and Rainy Days
by valdezy
Summary: Maybe all Lily needed to forgive James was a rainy day.
1. A Rainy Day with No Umbrella

**What I should be doing: Finishing my homework and editing an essay.**

**What I am doing: Listening to One Direction and writing this.**

**I know that I said in my last one-shot that my next story would be Percy Jackson, but I'm having serious writer's block on it, so I'm not sure when I'm gonna finish it. I thought of this idea, though, so I decided to write this one-shot. **

**Disclaimer: If I owned Harry Potter, it really wouldn't have ended at seven books.**

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><p>Lily was already in Hogsmade when she realized that she had forgotten her umbrella. Normally Lily would brush this issue off and continue to enjoy her day, but it was raining buckets and Lily was soaked to the core. The gray clouds hovered over the sky like a wet blanket, ringing out tons of icy cold water on her. Lily's good friend Lydia had told her that it was a beautiful, inspiring day outside; but then again, Lydia was an artist and she thought that anything was beautiful if she could paint it. As Lily looked around the drenched town, she noticed she was the only one on the streets. She was the only one outside of the safety of the colorful shops and houses of Hogsmade.<p>

Everyone else was in the Three Broomsticks having a cup of butterbeer or in Zonko's buying up things to prank their friends with. Lily had already used up enough money for the day, though, so said good-bye to her friends as they went into Honeydukes and she began to walk towards the edge of town.

It wasn't long before Lily heard footsteps slapping against the wet road behind her. She didn't turn around. Lily was quite sure they were just another poor victim of the rain who stupidly forgot their umbrella like she had. Her thoughts were interrupted though, by the person behind her calling her name.

Lily groaned. She knew this voice all to well. She had hoped that maybe, if the person behind her had been trying to catch up to her, it would have been Tobias March, the boy she had a crush on. But of course it had to be her absolute worst enemy.

"Evans! Wait up!" Lily did not wait; in fact, she sped up. The footsteps did too, and as Potter was a much faster runner than she was a fast-walker, he ended up next to her in a matter of seconds. "That wasn't really my definition of waiting…" he said as he slowed his pace to match hers. He carried a black umbrella above his head, shielding him from the icy cold bullets of rain pelting down, and Lily enviously stared at it for a second before snapping back to reality.

"Well, Potter, you weren't exactly someone I wanted to wait for!" She snapped irritably at him. He chuckled.

"Good way to make a friend, Evans. Snap at them, and tell them how you dislike them."

"I don't _want_ you as a friend, Potter." He smiled.

"Oh, really, Evans? Because I have an umbrella and you don't. And there's quite a way left for you to go."

"You're evil, Potter. I don't want your umbrella. I can use a water-repellant charm to stay dry."

"Really? Then why are you drenched to the bone? Why haven't you used it already?" Lily sighed. Potter was driving her up the wall. She knew that she could not pull that charm off; she was terrible at it. Lily had hoped that saying that she could use it would drive Potter away, but of course not. Potter was more annoying than a mandrake screaming in your ear nonstop. Of course, that would be more lethal than annoying. "You can't perform that spell yet, can you, Evans?" Potter grinned smugly. Lily wanted to scream. Quietly she took a deep breath and regained her posture.

"Is that all you're here for, Potter?"

"Huh?"

"To taunt and embarrass me?"

"No, wait, Lily-"

"Really, Potter! You are no more mature than a five year old boy! Just leave me alone, I've been trying to get back to Hogwarts in peace!" She stormed off, leaving a very deflated Potter behind her. She grinned. Despite the fact that she was dripping, freezing, and probably developing a case of pneumonia, she had just told Potter off, and that was enough to make her smile a little. The happiness didn't last long, unfortunately. The horrible slapping of footsteps came again, and suddenly the pounding of droplets against her head stopped. She looked up, and saw Potter's black umbrella above her head.

"I told you, Potter. I don't want your umbrella. Or your sympathy," She declared, pushing him and the umbrella away from her. "Didn't you get the idea that I don't want you here when I told you to go away a couple seconds ago?" Lily half expected another obnoxious smirk or a mean joke. Instead, when she looked at Potter, all she saw was hurt.

"Look, I'm sorry, Lily." Lily stared. She did not approve of Potter calling her by her first name, but as she was about to yell at him, he continued on. "Can't we just make peace?" He asked hopefully. Lily turned her nose up at him.

"Absolutely not, Potter. You've been making fun of Severus since he came to school, and-"

"Snivelly? He deserved it!" That crossed the line. Lily turned to Potter.

"No he did not, Potter! You've been a completely obnoxious prat to him forever! What did he ever to do you? He's my friend, and if you really want to make peace with me, you're going to have to start by _not _harassing my other friends!" James sighed.

"I truly am sorry, Lily. Just share the umbrella with me! You look like a stray dog with your hair stringy and wet like that, and you'll catch a cold if you get any wetter." Potter looked truly upset as he stood there in the pouring rain, holding the umbrella out to her.

"I will not share with a Quidditch and ego obsessed idiot."

"I'm really tired of our fighting, Evans. I'll stop pulling pranks on Sniv-Severus if it means that you'll forgive me. There are plenty of other targets in Hogwarts." Lily stared at him, the icy water beginning to slosh around her ankles. She looked up at the sky; the foreboding gray clouds did not look like they were leaving anytime soon. As Lily examined her hair and clothes, she did have to admit that Potter was right; she did look terrible. Her fiery red hair had turned wet and stringy from the rain, and her clothes were soaked and sticking uncomfortably to her. Lily sighed in defeat. She couldn't stand this anymore. She would be an ice cube by the time she reached the castle if she got any wetter. And Potter did apologize, and say he would stop being mean to Severus. Maybe she could forgive him, just this once. She was desperate, after all.

"Fine, Potter. You win." He looked shocked.

"What?"

"I'll share the umbrella. The rain isn't fun, you know."

"Oh! Yeah, right!" He awkwardly stuck the umbrella over Lily's head.

"Well, that won't work now, will it, Potter? You don't have any umbrella over your head now." Lily said matter-of-factly. So Potter stuck it somewhere in the middle.

"Move to the middle, Lily. The less you get wet, the less Madam Pomfrey will yell at you for not having an umbrella." She scooted in, only to realize that she was stuck next to Potter, shoulders touching, too close for comfort.

"I'd rather be wet," She said. She may have slightly forgiven him, but by no means were they good enough friends to be that close.

"So…" Potter trailed off. "Are we friends now?" He asked hopefully.

"Maybe, James. Maybe."

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><p>Lily had just managed to dry her hair off. She could tell she was getting a cold, and she would be utterly surprised if she did not wake up tomorrow with a fever. It was a pity the day had been so horrid outside, because the night was beautiful. The stars hovered in the sky like Christmas lights, and as Lily entered the dormitory with her hair in a towel and wearing the most blankets she could find over her shoulders, she noticed that Lydia was the only one of her roommates still up. She peeked over her shoulder at the sketchpad Lydia was drawing on. She had sketched an elaborate, detailed drawing of the Hogwarts grounds at night outside their window.<p>

"It's brilliant, Lydia," Lily breathed, rubbing her already bright red nose and startling Lydia.

"Oh, you scared me, Lily!" She took a good look at Lily. "You look terrible."

"Thank you," Lily said sarcastically. "I really do love to hear that."

"Get in bed! You'll be skipping class tomorrow, I expect. You'll probably have a high fever."

"Yes," Lily sighed. "I really do hate that bloody rain."

"Don't say that!" Lydia scolded. "Rain is one of the most beautiful things to paint!"

"It's a pity Hogwarts doesn't have an art class, Lydia. You'd excel."

"I know! But my favorite class is Charms." She noticed Lily was still standing up. "Get in bed, Lily!" Lily obliged, and as she was shutting the curtains of her four-poster bed, Lydia grinned wickedly from her bed next to Lily's.

"So I heard you and Potter walked home today. Under the same umbrella."

"Yes," Lily said. "I didn't like it, you know."

"Of course you didn't," Lydia responded in that way that grown-ups always used that Lily hated, where they spoke as if they knew better than you.

"I'm going to sleep," Lily said irritably. Lydia grinned evilly once again. Lily didn't like that look on her face. It was the same look Potter always had before he played a nasty trick on her. Lydia quickly spoke before Lily could shut the curtains.

"Wait, Lily- Have you two snogged yet?

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><p><strong>Yup. Once again, another cheesy one-shot. I seriously hope that I got all the British terms right. <strong>

**Ah, poor Lily, all cold and sick and forced to share an umbrella with her worst enemy. :)**

**You know, maybe I'll make this into a series of one-shots. But for now it's completed. If I get enough reviews from people, I might make it into a series of one-shots. **

**Reviews make me happy. :)**


	2. Sick Days and Obnoxious Potters

**Yeah, yeah. It's been FOREVER. But the teachers at my school gave us a huge amount of homework, tests, and projects right after my grade got back from this three-day enviornmental field trip thing. So I haven't had much free time. :(**

**Okay, this chapter has a lot less mushiness than the last one did. Oh, and yeah. I (obviously) decided to make this a two-shot. I'm probably not gonna add anymore chapters, though. **

**One more thing, I want to thank MissyMarauderette and BlackRoseDragonCK for being the only two to review the first chapter. You guys really helped me want to write another chapter for this and make it a two-shot. Thanks so much! **

**Disclaimer: Ahh, I did one last chapter. Go read that disclaimer.**

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><p>Lily sank further into the warm red armchair and pulled her blanket closer to herself. After getting soaked by the rain the day before, she had gone to Madam Pomfrey, who told her that she had a cold. Apparently the best cure for a cold, even to wizards, was really just rest and comfort. So here she was, skipping classes to stay in the common room and relax for a day. Not that she was really complaining...<p>

Lily turned the page of her book. It was a really famous muggle novel, and she had been meaning to get around to reading it all year, but the tons of homework she always had had prevented her from reading it. Now she finally opened it, grinning. It wasn't so bad after all, this cold. Skip classes for a day, read a book, and eat chocolate chips from the bag. Of course, the constant coughing, sneezing, and fever were annoying, but you win some, you lose some. So she sat there for a bit while all her friends were in classes.

Soon after, though, the other Gryffindor began to climb through the portrait hole, and her quiet, peaceful reading space began to get crowded and loud. She waved to her friend Niall and asked for his notes and what the homework was from Potions so that she wouldn't be behind. After Niall gave them to her, she thanked him and began to do her homework, coughing and sneezing the entire time. It was a long essay on Emptying Elixirs, and she just barely finished it by the time Potter walked into the common room with his loud friends. After the little moment of bonding they had under the umbrella, she had gone right back to disliking him. On the inside, she was just starting to realize that he wasn't quite as awful as she had believed since she met him, but she was still not going to go on the date with him that he had been continually asking her on. Although, no matter what she wanted to think, she couldn't deny anymore that he was seriously cute.

Sirius walked up to her, grinning in that way that told her he was about to do something that was going to make her want to slap him.

"Well, little Lily's a bit wilted there, eh? But you can blame James for that!" He grinned and shoved James, who shoved him back, pushing him away from them. "Haha! Alright, you two lovebirds, I can take a hint. C'mon, Remus, Peter, let's leave these two so James can try to snog her and she can slap him, like usual." He laughed and walked away, Peter following behind and Remus waving at James before he ran to join Sirius.

"So. Are you going to try to snog me then?" Lily asked, rubbing her already red eyes. "Because Sirius isn't wrong you know; I will slap you. Don't think that just because I have a cold means I won't hit you." James just grinned.

"I'm _fully _aware of that, Evans, but that won't stop a guy from trying. So, I was wondering, since our last date went so well…" Lily's face went red. _Date? _Her and James Potter on a _date? _

"Are you out of your mind? What _date_?" She asked in a quiet, horrified hoarse whisper. "What, yesterday in the rain? That wasn't a date? You made me share your umbrella in the pouring rain from Hogsmade! How was that a DATE?" James grinned.

"Oh, you didn't think that it was a date?" Sirius, who'd obviously been spying on them, hoping to see James get slapped, popped up from behind one of the nearby armchairs. "Well, Evans, too bad, because little Jamesy here's been telling the whole school you two went on one yesterday." Lily's face, if possible, heated up even more. Sirius laughed and ran away, sensing highly possible danger.

"WHAT?" Lily yelled, but it was kind of less dramatic because her voice was hoarse from the cold so it wasn't very loud or threatening.

"Uh, um, well, see…" James grappled for something to say that might save him from a beating from a sick girl. He was obviously much stronger than her, but he wasn't going to hit her back if she decided to hit him, because not only would he look bad, he'd also lose all the slim chances he may have had with dating Lily.

_SMACK! _The sharp sound resounded through the room. Lily still looked mortified. She never often hit anyone, despite how Sirius had made it sound. But that despicable Potter boy had gone around telling the _entire school _that they were dating! That just wasn't okay. While James looked shocked and started cursing from pain, she started coughing. She still wasn't feeling good. James, after finally regaining his composure, looked at Lily.

"Lily? Are you okay?" She sneezed.

"Yeah, I'm fine, Potter. Go away. And if you dare ever lie again and tell anyone else we're dating, well… you don't want to know what I'll do!" She knew that that threat was really feeble and pathetic, but what was she supposed to do? She was sick.

James walked away, looking at her. He, as much as he didn't want to admit it, did feel really bad for her. As he got near his friends, Moony looked at him.

"I could hear the slap from over here. And that big red mark on your face kind of shows it, but how'd everything go?" James gave him a look.

"I just got slapped hard on the face by the girl I like who is currently sick in the common room because I told the whole school we're dating and now she hates my guts even more than she did before. It's brilliant, Moony." He said sarcastically.

"Well, what're you going to do to fix it?" He asked. Sirius looked at him.

"Fix it? What's he got to fix? She'll come around eventually."

"I don't think so, Padfoot. You've met her; she hates James and unless he really makes it up to her, I don't think she'll just forgive him like that." James sighed. Why did he have to have a huge crush on a girl that's so stubborn?

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><p>Lily stared at the fireplace. The flames merrily danced around as if celebrating at a party. The exact opposite of how she was feeling. Sick, unhappy, confused, sleepy, and angry are not really a good match. The common room was empty (it was really late), but Lily still had to do her Transfiguration work that she missed from class and she wasn't going to go to bed before she finished. Sleepily scribbling onto the paper, she yawned loudly, then sneezed. It was a vicious, never-ending cycle of sneezing, coughing, and yawning.<p>

She turned when she heard footsteps behind her.

"Remus?" She asked, confused. "What are you doing down here?" He looked like a deer caught in headlights.

"Um. Well, you see, I just came down here, to, uh, go to the kitchens. Yeah, that's it. I'm hungry," Lily stared at him.

"That is the most unconvincing lie I've ever heard." He looked even more scared. "Where are you really going?"

"Kitchens, I'm not lying!" He said. Lily knew he was definitely lying. Lily yawned again.

"You're lucky I like you better than Potter," She said. "And that I'm sick and tired. Otherwise I'd definitely be reporting you right now. And if anyone asks, I was asleep when you came in here, that's why I didn't stop you. Clear?" He nodded vigorously and practically ran for his life out of the common room. Lily wondered what could be so urgent that he had to get out of there so fast. She looked up to the one other source of light coming into the common room, the pale moonlight from the full moon that filtered through the large glass windows. She yawned again, which was followed by a cough, sneeze, and her fifth box of tissues.

More footsteps. Lily turned around again, wondering who else was planning on sneaking off. To her surprise, no one was there when she looked behind her. Were her ears hallucinating now? But the footsteps still came. Why were there footsteps if no one was there?  
>She couldn't focus anymore, so she left the mystery footsteps to stay a mystery (Something she would normally never do) and slowly drifted off to sleep, willing herself not to sneeze while she did.<p>

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><p>When Lily woke up, the table next to her chair covered with chocolate. Wary, afraid maybe Potter gave her the chocolates and spiked it with some kind of love potion she slowly lifted up one of the boxes as if it might explode.<p>

Funnily enough, Potter walked into the room right then. He saw her awake and grinned really big. Lily groaned. This couldn't be good…

"So, Evans. Feeling any better?"

"After you left, actually, I got a lot better." She said, trying to keep some of her pride.

"Yeah, obviously. That's why you were half asleep with unfinished Transfiguration homework when I came in the common room last night."

"You were in the common room last night when I was awake? But the only person I saw was Remus!" James looked like Remus had last night.

"What? Uh, no. I was there to…give the chocolates. I did that last night. That's all." Lily looked skeptical, but she let it pass because it was a sort of fair excuse.

"So. You were the one who gave me all these chocolates, then?" Lily asked. James grinned again.

"Who else?" He picked one up and popped a chocolate in his mouth. "Oh, and Evans. If you changed your mind at all, that date is still open-"

"Not a chance, Potter."

"That's what I thought."

"And don't think that I can be bought into forgiving you with chocolate! Girls only forgive people from that in the movies."

"I didn't think you would. I just thought it would help. And, hey, look! It did. You're talking to me. That's a good sign, huh?" He threw her the box of chocolates he had in his hand, which she nimbly caught. "Not too shabby, Evans," he grinned. "You should try out for Quidditch," Then he waved and walked away.

"Oh, shut up, Potter! Quidditch would mean spending more time with _you!_ " She yelled after him.

"Exactly why I'm suggesting you try out! What better reason is there?" He yelled back, still walking away.

"Ugh," Lily said. She flipped over the box of chocolates and noticed a sticky note posted to the back. "What?"

_I know that you looooooove me, Evans! XP_

_- James _

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><p><strong>Yeah, the ending is kinda suckish, but I really wanted that note in there somewhere. <strong>

**Just about stories that are gonna be coming soon, I have some Doctor Who ones coming, the summaries and titles are on my profile. Also, these aren't on my profile because I'm still not 100% sure that I'm going to write them, but I may have a Percy Jackson fanfic and some other Harry Potter ones coming soon. **

**Oh yeah, before I forget: REVIEW! The button's down there. Press it! You know you want to. :P**


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